19 Chapter 19

Walking through the halls, everyone that sees Eragon does a double take, shocked by the changes to his body. Eragon hears them whispering even when he is far away from them. His new senses are a little overwhelming for him, causing a mild headache that slowly dissipates as he gets used to them. Once he arrives at the forge, he takes two raw pieces of ore and attaches them together with an iron rod, making sure that the weight is even between them. 

Over the next couple of hours, Eragon does some deadlifts, squats, push-ups, and other such exercises to relearn how his body works. He finds that his strength has increased considerably along with a moderate boost to his speed. Speed wise he is around the same as a standard elf. And while this is a decent increase, it is not as much as he was hoping for. His strength on the other hand, now eclipses even the might of the urgals. The weight that he made is deadlifted with ease even though it weighs around 700kg. 

Once he has a decent handle on how strong his new body is, he starts up the forge and begins making a prosthetic arm for Roran. He uses the leftover steel from when he made his armor to fashion the outer shell as well as the hand itself. The joints in the hand are made by having a metal ball with a track on the inside that the fingers can follow to open and close like a normal hand. On the inside, there are fake muscles, bones, and nerves made of graphene and steel that will control the hand movements. The hardest part of making this arm was the enchantment to bind it to the stump where Roran's arm used to be. The enchantment has to find the nerves in his arm then forcefully connect them to the artificial nerves. Eragon had already spent a good amount of time researching to make this enchantment so he applied it right then and there. 

Because Roran doesn't have access to mana, Eragon goes light on the durability enchantment, focusing more on rust prevention and repairing damage instead. He inserts an emerald into the palm of the hand with enough mana inside to power the enchantments for about a year even accounting for over use. Eragon looks at his belt and sighs as this is the last of his gems with energy left in them. Those that remain have been completely drained of energy, leaving him with not enough reserves for his liking. 

It's as he is contemplating asking Orik for some gems when Brom slams open the door and scans him from head to toe. A deep scowl forms on his face as he stomps up to him. 

"Eragon!!! Are you an idiot!!!? Altering your body with magic is forbidden. Only the elves have ever pulled it off successfully. You could have killed yourself or worse… Ended up in a useless body, a prison of your own making." 

Eragon stands his ground and looks him dead in the eye. "You said to me, and I quote, 'Now you go and prepare yourself in the way that only you can', and I have done just that. I was meaning to ask you about it but we got sidetracked with the talk about my visions. I'm sorry that I didn't consult you about it but what's done is done. I had Saphira's consent and guidance along with my detailed notes of what I was going to alter that I had been working on for the past few weeks. Now I just need to get used to my new body before I have to fight anyone." 

Brom's anger slowly dissipates as he takes in his son's words. "Huu… Fine… I shouldn't have been surprised that you did something like this to begin with. Just… Let me know if you're going to do something this dangerous please? You keep shaving years off my life with your antics." 

Eragon chuckles. "No… That is you just getting old." 

Brom glares at him but with a slight smile on his face. "Watch it boy… Now let me get a good look at what you have done to yourself shall I?." 

Brom walks in circles around Eragon, examining his body as if it was a prized piece of meat, nodding to himself every once in a while. "Hmmm… Increased muscle mass with no deformities. Your skin is harder but still flexible. What else did you change?" 

Eragon scratches the back of his head sheepishly. "Well I made most of my organs work more efficiently, I made my skin and bones stronger, I increased my muscle mass, and I heightened my five senses a good amount." 

Brom freezes in place, his mind buffering as he tries and fails to comprehend what he just said. "You're telling me… basically your entire body has had an overhaul, making you stronger than even the elves and urgals but then you made yourself durable enough to withstand standard blades with ease…" 

Eragon puts his hands on his hips and looks upwards triumphantly. "Exactly." 

"What am I going to do with you…" Brom sits down in a nearby chair and puts his head in his hands. "My son is our greatest hope but he is far too reckless." he says to himself. "Why did I swear to not drink anymore? I could really use one right now…" 

And with that, Brom leaves shortly after finishing their discussion. Eragon spends the next few days in the forge fine tuning Roran's prosthetic arm so that there will be zero complications when he goes to put it on. Eragon uses the scrying spell on Roran once again and finds him sitting in a luxurious room with Katrina seated next to him talking adamantly to an elderly gentleman that he recognizes. 

"Why is Roran in Jeod's study? What could be the reason that he is there talking to Jeod?" Eragon scratches his head in contemplation. "Whatever. Might as well give him my gift right now seeing as he is in a safe place. I will have to add a note telling them to leave Teirm. I can't have them die on my watch." 

After writing a note for Roran, in common this time, he places it inside another box along with the prosthetic arm and sends it on its way. He watches as the three jump in surprise as the box materializes in the room with them in a flash of light. After reading the letter, Roran shakes his fist at the heavens before removing the bandages around the stump where his left hand used to be and slotting the prosthetic on it. Roran grits his teeth in pain for a few minutes before the pain fades and he tests out his new arm. To the shocked faces of Jeod and Katrina, Roran shows off the strength and flexibility of his new appendage, easily lifting his hammer with almost zero effort. 

"So he still ended up using that hammer huh?" Eragon says aloud to himself. "If fate exists in this world it probably hates me." 

Eragon ends the scry and begins writing a note for Murtagh, explaining the circumstances for why he is sending the note and that he should link up with the Varden if he wants to help defeat Galbatorix. Once he is done, he decides to cast the scrying spell on him, just to make sure he isn't in a populated area. After casting the spell, all Eragon sees is a black emptiness. Eragon's brow furrows as the reality of the situation hits him like a freight train.

"I'm too late… Galbatorix has him now…"

…

Eragon cancels the scrying spell and starts to pace around the room, his anger at his own stupidity clouds his mind. 

"I am so stupid. I should have helped Murtagh earlier. Now Galbatorix is going to torture him along with Thorn, his dragon. Now he will be an obstacle between me and Galbatorix." 

Eragon sits down on the floor and breathes slowly and evenly to repel the rage. "Calm your mind, Eragon… You need to focus. Because I didn't help Murtagh in time, I will have to fight him in the future. There must be a way I can help him, like making a spell that can break oaths that use your true name. Speaking of which…" 

Eragon tilts his head, wondering what his true name would be. Would he even have one, him being an interloper to this universe. Eragon contemplates this for a few minutes before shrugging his shoulders and leaving the forge. Returning to the Dragonhold, he finds Saphira curled up on the floor, her breath smooth and tranquil as she sleeps. He smiles slightly at the sight before walking over to a table littered with his notes and experiments, diving back into his research with renewed vigor. 

…

Another four days pass as Brom and Ajihad hatch a plan to deal with the twins swiftly and without recourse. To defeat the twins with minimal casualties, certain conditions must be met. Firstly, they must either restrain or remove their use of magic as they are some of the most competent magic users in the Varden. Secondly, it must be determined if Galbatorix has given them any boons that may protect or strengthen themselves. And finally, they must be lured into a secure location and dealt with in complete secrecy, for there is no telling how many spies exist in the Varden at this point in time. Only Brom, Ajihad, Eragon, and Saphira are guaranteed to be on the Vardens side. 

With Brom's help, Eragon is able to make a new spell that will stop all sound in a room. In theory, it should stop the twins from casting spells verbally. Hopefully, they don't know how to cast with their mind as they have no way of stopping such spell casting. Determining the location for the battle was the easiest part. With Ajihad's permission, within Ajihad's study, Eragon sets up a barrier that will seal the door with a simple command word, locking everyone inside until the barrier is disabled or runs out of energy. The only flaw in their plan is that they were unable to determine if Galbatorix had strengthened the twins with some unknown spell.

With all the preparations completed, Ajihad has an attendant summon the twins to his study. Eragon, Brom, and Saphira stand before Ajihad's desk, doing their utmost to appear unsuspecting. 

Barging through the door, the twins see the lineup of individuals in the room, giving each other a very quick glance before walking forward. Seeing them, Ajihad stands from his desk. 

"Good, you have arrived. Now I wouldn't disturb your work with good reason but our young rider has received a vision that depicts a horde of urgals assaulting this very city. I would like your opinion on the feasibility of such an attack." 

The twins visibly flinch when Ajihad says army of urgals. They look at each other and give an almost imperceptible nod. Luckily, Eragon noticed this and sealed the room, then he casts the spell that blocks all sound in the room. The twins only get a few words out before their voices cut out, canceling the spells they were about to cast. 

Realizing the danger they are in, they each pull out a dagger from their waists, the older brother charging towards Eragon whilst the other leaps over the table to stab Ajihad. Before getting anywhere near Eragon, a gout of flame erupts from Saphira's maw, covering the man in a torrent of fire. Just before reaching his skin, the fire diverts around him, his charge remaining unhindered as he closes in on Eragon. 

Waiting for his arrival, Eragon stands in a ready stance with his sword drawn. Once he gets close enough, Eragon moves with blinding speed, delivering a thrust towards the elder twin's heart. Just before the blade would pierce his flesh, it is diverted to the side by his barrier. Unbenounced to the elder twin, the enchantment of Eragon's sword starts to suck mana from his barrier, causing one of the sapphire gems in the blade to glow brighter than before. 

With a triumphant, crazed look on his face, the elder twin stabs his dagger into the right side of Eragon's chest, his manic look turning into shock when he sees his dagger glance off Eragon's armor, not even leaving a scrape.

Eragon smirks at the elder twin as they continue to exchange blow after blow on each other, neither getting hurt by the other's attacks. Wanting in on the action, Saphira charges at the elder twin, swinging her claws at him with ferocity. The barrier around the elder twin continues to hold but the look of desperation in his eyes tells Eragon that he is reaching his limit. The silence of the room is disconcerting considering the flurry of activity within. 

Realizing that his time is up, the elder twin gets some distance from Eragon and Saphira before darting towards Ajihad and Brom who have been fighting the younger twin this whole time. Eragon sprints after him, easily catching up and slicing towards the tendons of his legs. The barrier finally breaks and his sword connects, causing the elder twin to fall to the ground screaming silently in pain. Eragon swiftly decapitates him before looking over at Brom and seeing the younger twin's dagger lodged in his chest. 

Fear grips Eragon's heart, dropping the silence spell as he runs over to Brom. Without his dagger, the younger twin is stabbed through the chest by Ajihad's blade and falls to the ground. Eragon just manages to grab Brom before he falls over. With a look of worry, he removes the dagger from Brom's chest and begins healing the wound whilst drawing out any poison that may have been on the blade. The color of Brom's skin that had already started to turn pale from the poison slowly regains its color as he comes back to consciousness. 

It's at this moment that the barrier blocking the door is blast open from the outside, a contingent of guards storming into the room followed by a woman in a long blue dress. She scans the room, a dangerous glint appearing in her eyes as they alight upon the headless corpse of the elder twin. Meanwhile, the guards rush to Ajihad's side, giving Eragon and Saphira a wide berth and finding him only slightly injured from the battle. Shaking his head to clear it, Ajihad looks over and sees Eragon tending to Brom, a hint of fury in his eyes for a brief moment before his expression hardens and he turns towards the guard next to him. 

"Lieutenant, get everyone out of here." Ajihad stands up and walks up to Eragon, placing his hand upon his shoulder. "I will get the healers here as fast as I can." 

Seeing the woman who entered earlier, Ajihad starts to speak to her about something but Eragon is too focused on healing Brom's injury. He ends up having to draw some of Saphira's energy before the wound is fully healed and the poison removed successfully. Brom's eyes flutter underneath his eyelids as he sleeps, his breathing stable. 

Sighing in relief, Eragon looks at Saphira while panting from overexertion. He carefully lifts his father in his arms and walks towards his quarters, Saphira walking behind him. Eragon links his mind with Saphira's as they walk, enjoying the unity of their minds.

"That was too close for comfort. If Brom had died, I don't know what I would have done…" 

"We prepared thoroughly and fought with all our hearts. That could have gone way worse and you know it. Brom is alive and well, you should be proud." 

Eragon sighs, the sadness in his heart still present but mellowed considerably. "It was not my fault. I prepared as best that I could and fought with all that I had. Most people wouldn't be able to accept that. They would degrade themselves for their past failures, spiraling down a dark abyss from which there is no return. But we will not falter. We will train with the elves, reach heights of magic no one has ever seen, and end Galbatorix's reign of tyranny once and for all. Afterwards, we will head to the west as Angela foretold and find our true destiny."

"I'm glad that you have the motivation and drive to move forward. Nothing can stop us if we work together. You stay and tend to Brom while I will head back to the dragon roost. We must prepare for the urgals assault." 

Saphira turns down another corridor towards the exit to Farthen Dur as Eragon's footsteps echo through the deserted corridors towards Brom's residence. He opens the door and sets Brom down gently on his bed, casting some diagnostic spells on him to make sure he is alright. He exhales loudly before pulling a blanket over him and finding a good spot for himself to sleep on the cold floor.